Depending on the age of your child, sand can be a friend or foe. I still remember the first year we visited PEI as a family. My youngest son had just turned one and we spent the entire trip digging sand out of his mouth. I was worried that my entire Summer would be spent hovering over him as he shovelled handfuls of sand into his mouth but we discovered upon our return to Ottawa that it wasn’t the sand that appealed to him in PEI but rather the salty sand that he loved the taste of! Thankfully the playground sand in Ottawa didn’t hold the same appeal.
1. When sand is your foe. If you take your camera to the beach try to change your lens in your vehicle before or after. Any time you change your lens, there is the possibility of introducing sand or dirt into the interior of your camera, which you want to avoid if you can. If you have no choice but to change your lens at the beach, stand up and keep your back to the wind in order to reduce the amount of debris entering your camera.
2. Watch the horizon. Do your best to keep your horizons straight to avoid having to crop and edit your photos in your camera or phone. It’s also helpful to be mindful of where the horizon intersects your subject to ensure that it’s not distracting (e.g., at the neck).
3. Let it go. You may not find Olaf at the beach but it’s a great time to embrace your inner Elsa and ‘let it go!’ Remember that your baby or toddler isn’t going to be interested in a portrait session at the beach and the best way to get beautiful photos is to let them play and have fun and to follow them with your camera rather than trying to get them to pose and look at the camera. If they are too fast to keep up with, have another family member play with them to keep them in the same spot.
3. Let it go. You may not find Olaf at the beach but it’s a great time to embrace your inner Elsa and ‘let it go!’ Remember that your baby or toddler isn’t going to be interested in a portrait session at the beach and the best way to get beautiful photos is to let them play and have fun and to follow them with your camera rather than trying to get them to pose and look at the camera. If they are too fast to keep up with, have another family member play with them to keep them in the same spot.
4. Speedy Gonzales. If your child is splashing in the water or shovelling sand, you are going to want to make sure that the shutter speed on your camera or phone is set fast enough so that the movement in your photo isn’t blurry. There are several third party camera apps that allow you to set your shutter speed on your phone. If you are using a camera, you can adjust your shutter speed in S mode (Nikon), TV mode (Canon), or if you put it in sport mode your camera can increase your shutter speed for you. Try to keep it above 1/250 of a second but it may need to be higher if you notice that the movement is still blurry.
5. Don’t forget the details! Here are some of my favourite close-up photos to take of my kids at the beach: sandy toes and fingers; the expressions on their faces when they are building a sand castle or playing in the water; their eyes peeking out from under their hats; the treasures they find in the sand; eating ice cream or other messy treats; their messy and sun-bleached hair.
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